Has it been another week already???

Time is flying by on wings now that we are home in Poland. It figures. Here is glimpse of some of what we did this week:

1. Our house has the lovliest institutional-style staircase you could ever wish not to have in your home. In order to soften the stone-type steps for our feet, and the ringing echo for our ears, we shopped for stair-covers and runners for the landings. Prices were duly noted, and the whole project shelved for a future date. On the list of wants and needs, this falls somewhere in the middle--after the horrible linoleum in the kitchen gets repaced, and before we have satellite TV connected.

2. I delved deep into the storage closet (where I found more books, of course) in order to locate two books my kids desperately need for school. 12yo E. will be reading Birth of Britain, volume 1 of Churchill's History of the English-Speaking Peoples, and 15yo J. will be reading volume 4, The Great Democracies. Why did I bury these books in the bottom of the closet?

3. We invited a couple over for coffee Saturday night. He is a believer, although his wife is not. They brought Polish "Ptasie" for the children--a type of candy that makes me think of Turkish delight--chocolate-covered Turkish delight. My ears are doing okay understanding Polish, but my tongue is tripping all over some of the words. It's frustrating, but nothing will cure it but practice.

4. I began reading one of the books I saved for myself, then lost it. Someone else found it for me, and now it's parked on my desk waiting for me to have time for it.

5. Krakovian updated my computer system, and I can hardly figure out how to work all the new "features."

6. Changed diapers, homeschooled, cooked meals, gave baths, did laundry, washed floors, and ironed clothes. Taking care of a famiy of six requires a certain minimum investment of time. Fortunately, said family chipped in and did their share. But I think I got all the diapers.

7. Mostly it's been so cold I've had no desire to get out and explore the city--one of my favorite things to do, as a general rule. However, on one warm day, E. and I walked to the nearest shop (about 10 minutes away). It has been interesting to reaquaint myself with Polish products and prices. E. looked for her favorite kind of potato chips, begged for special Polish bread, and chose a kind of Polish candy she hasn't had for a year. I found sweet potatoes for sale--they never had those here before--and didn't find the ground flax seed I wanted. That's the joy of shopping in Poland. One store never has everything you want, and I'll have to go to another store where I'm pretty sure they'll have it.

So, it's pretty obvious that life is settling into a kind of routine, with ordinary--even boring-- activities filling the bulk of our days. And I don't mind a bit.